Accurate alkalinity determinations are important to many industries and water types. For example, in drinking water, a high alkalinity can result in an objectionable taste. Alkalinity of water is the same as its acid-neutralizing capacity and is measured by the sum of all the titratable bases. Water may have a high alkalinity due to the presence of hydroxides, carbonates, bicarbonates, and other forms of oxidized carbon.
Alkalinity is a required reporting parameter for many regulatory agencies such as the EPA and FDA. The EPA has listed pH (which is a function of alkalinity) as a secondary drinking water regulation, limiting pH to 6.5-8.5. Alkalinity concentration is also used in industrial water discharge regulation. Per the EPA disinfection byproduct rule, industrial effluent alkalinity is controlled as alkalinity is increased or decreased based upon the Total Organic Carbon (TOC) concentration in the water—as TOC relates to the formation of trihalomethanes. Trihalomethanes can have adverse health effects, and the EPA limits the concentration of some trihalomethanes in drinking water to 80 parts per billion (ppb).